Preemptive Strike

DJ Shadow

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 13, 1998)
• Original Release Date: January 13, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fontana Island
• ASIN: B000005DQU
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #45,990 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
This set compiles much of DJ Shadow's pre-major label material in one convenient package in an attempt to foil bootleggers and bring new fans up-to-date in the curriculum. The results are naturally varied, but all point to a marvelous evolution of talent. The collection is kept together primarily by its propensity for jazzy beats and psychedelic loops. Shadow (né Josh Davis) moves through everything from old school funk ("In/Flux") to grungy '60s-style guitar raveups ("High Noon"). The centerpiece of the set, however, is a four-part composition called "What Does Your Soul Look Like," which is likely to be the first ever entirely sample-driven rock opera. It's a brilliant piece of work, laced with intriguing sounds, sound bites, and a detectable set of motion. It is also quite possibly better than anything on the critically -acclaimed Entroducing. --Aidin Vaziri

Option
[T]he weight of these constructions is undeniable. Even if some of Shadow's grooves seem a bit facile, his rich layers of appropriated samples, perfectly pitched and positioned into organic units, eventually draw you in.... Shadow's penchant for rare groove keeps things moving. There are trippy snippets floating up through flute loops or living strings, disembodied voices delivering pseudo-heavy bons mots.... On "Hindsight" and "Organ Donor (Extended Overhaul)" he nearly gives it up, hinting that he could tear up a dancefloor if he wanted. But for now, it seems like his mind is elsewhere; conversing with vinyl ghosts, headphones over both ears.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What Josh Davis' Soul Looks Like, May 3, 2005

By	D. R. Locker (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Enough with the arguments. Everyone knows what Shadow's best tracks are. Some of them are on Entroducing. Some are on Preemptive Strike. A couple are on Private Press. He also did some real magic with James Lavelle on Psyence Fiction. And almost all of his best are on In Tune and On Time.

But if you look at In Tune and On Time, his live album, as a reflection of what Shadow is most proud of and what he is most "into" at the time, it seems pretty clear to me that he is 1) enamored with his recent work (Private Press), but 2) still sees his vision as a product of his early musical conceptions. It is these early musical conceptions (and some revamped ones) that you get with Preemptive Strike.

I am a huge Shadow fan and have been for a long time. blah, blah, . . . I was fortunate enough to see him perform the In Tune set live at Stubbs in Austin when he toured for the release of Private Press. Shadow is a showman extraordinairre and I was blown away. The amount of brilliance that went into his visuals and track order have seen few equals. I remember that he dropped the first track (Fixed Income) after the following words:

"The most important thing for me is that you know how much I appreciate you and have a good time. You see, I view you, the fans, as my employers, and this is my resume . . ."

This kind of humilty and appreciation is sadly missing in most musicians.

Therefore I don't think that it is out of line to view In Tune as a reflection of his own view on his career. The two clear winners are Private Press and Preemptive Strike. Private Press can be explained by recency, but I think the reason that Shadow still plays so much Preemptive Strike is because it still reflects how he views himself.

As much as I love Endtroducing (Building Steam, Midnight, and Stem/Long Stem are clearly some of his best), Preemptive Strike is no less essential listening. Between In Flux, High Noon, and Organ Donor, you have as much of a concentration of greatness as the best tracks on Endtroducing. And then there is What Does Your Soul Look Like, which is like a warm blanket, flowing, changing, and walking you through Shadow's own soul. Just amazing. It seems incredibly ironic to me that Preemptive Strike seems to flow more smoothly than Endtroducing, despite it being a chronological compilation of previous endeavors.

My point is not to pick a fight between Entroducing and Preemptive Strike (or fuel the existing battle), but to encourage any fan of DJ Shadow to make sure Preemptive Strike is on your absolute shortest list of must own albums. Do not underestimate this album because of its origins. Camel Bobsled Race is also great; getting a chance to hear Q-Bert remix/compile Shadow is a treat.

I also think that Psyence Fiction is essential, and it is pretty clear that Shadow likes those tracks too. Also don't miss the bootleg of him live in Austin or his old Soulside tracks. Product Placement is a fun mix, too.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Metaphysically Effervescent..., September 20, 2000

By	"solecism13" (Kingston, PA United States) - See all my reviews

DJ Shadow, master mixer, reached his creative zenith in Preemptive Strike with music that forces the listener to manifest the meaning. Sound clips, definitive scratches, muted brass, and drum beats undulate through the smooth rhythm and produce a pensive mindset throughout the experience. There is no question of the skill involved to blend so many unique sounds into a medley. The album starts off with a percussion intro that fades into the mellow masterpiece In/Flux. Hindshot follows, giving you the impression of anxiety and fear with foreign ambiance. The next four tracks contain the thought provoking What Does Your Soul Look Like. The Soul series, dips into your conscience and emits a whole theological feel that undermines a continuous harmony. Highnoon and Organ Donor are no doubt, the most definitive tracks, radiating a feeling of euphoria through your body. The fast tempo offers diversity to the album compared to the calm In/Flux and Soul series, giving it an appealing array of emotional enigmas. The second disk features DJ Q-Bert along with Shadow, linking all of the tracks into a megamix. High and low, fast and slow, the megamix offers incredible energy. I cannot offer enough emphasis to how truly incredible this album is, please open your mind and buy it.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the Intro to Shadow for Buddhists, June 3, 2004

By	Thaddeus (nyc) - See all my reviews

This record is getting ripped on by a couple of reviewers for not being Endtroducing... or Private Press. They all agree that High Noon and Organ Donor are all that make this cd worth having and that is some straight-up bull$!@#. This was my introduction to Shadow and it might have taken a little while to really sink in, but it hooked me on his music and made me vow to pick up everything he laid his lily white hands upon. This record is like Neitzche's void opening up in your mind and fixing its dark gaze right into the center of you. I've just heard Joseph Campbell mention that poetry is a metaphor for all the mysteries of existence and this for me is a transcendent poem that has helped glimpse behind the mask of the mysteries.

Preemptive Strike is mostly slow and plodding, but each beat dropped lands right in the center of my head. It builds and builds, creating mischief from disparate sources of sound, weaving together a web that seems to form a story that you could almost make out if some of the pieces weren't missing. Some of the most affecting spoken samples are from "Johnny Got His Gun", as I later found out. Go see that movie if you like this record. If you enjoy "Diamond Sea" by Sonic Youth, "1983..." by Jimi Hendrix or "Revolution #9" by the Beatles, give this record a couple of spins through a pair of huge headphones.